Christmas Promises

Hundreds of years before Mary and Joseph wandered around Bethlehem, searching desperately for a place where she could give birth, God told Isaiah what Christmas means from heaven's perspective.

"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."

In other words, Isaiah was told that a king was coming with authority upon him, and his reign would be marked by the wisdom he gave his people, the power with which he rescued his people, his intimate fatherly kindness to his people, and the peace in which his people would live.

But the greatest part of the promise is what follows.

"Of the increase of his government and of peace there will be no end, on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish it and uphold it with justice and righteousness from this time forth and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this."

God promised that what was set in motion in the manger, in the obscurity and stench of farm animals, would never stop increasing in influence upon the earth. Like a snowball tumbling down the mountain, the rule of this child would only expand in size and power over time. 2000 years later, Jesus the King continues to transform lives. The seed of Jesus's Kingdom never stops growing- even in the face of persecution, materialism, and opposing ideologies. Day after day the sick are healed, the oppressed set free, and the dead brought to life.

We can take courage that the story we celebrate on Christmas did not end 2000 years ago- it is our own epic of a Kingdom of hope breaking through with redemption to every corner of the earth God loves. We are right in the middle of it.

Lessons from Atticus Finch

This term I am having my high school students read the familiar classic, To Kill a Mockingbird. Since I myself hadn’t read it since I was sixteen, I figured it would be a good idea to pick the book up again.

It was amazing. What a wonderful story- a vivid journey into a different time and place, a gripping drama about courage and truth and human nature. I felt so moved by the themes of the novel, and could not help but wondering how they speak to us today.

One particular exchange struck me. Late in the book, after (SPOILER ALERT) Atticus’ black defendent is wrongfully found guilty because his accuser is white, Jem (Atticus’ son) is speaking with his neighbor about his deep disappointment in his community.

“I always thought Maycomb folks were the best folks in the world, least that’s what they seemed like,” young Jem laments.

“We’re the safest folks in the world,” replies his sagely neighbor, Miss Maudie. She goes on. “We’re so rarely called on to be Christians, but when we are, we’ve got men like Atticus to go for us.”

I was struck by the insight. Often times our greatest priority is “safety.” We want a safe neighborhood, a safe town, a safe car, and a safe home. I recognize the common sense wisdom in that- the survival instinct is human nature. Yet sometimes when we say “safe”, what it turns out to mean is “insulated” from anything and anyone that is different than us. Our pursuit of safety leaves us surrounded by neighbors and friends that think like we think, and behave like we behave.

And yet Jesus said “If you only love those who are your brothers (insert here: people similar to you) than what makes you different than everyone else? Everyone does that.” Jesus demands we love our “enemies”- aka people who believe, act, talk and live differently than we do. And the love Jesus is calling for is not an intellectual exercise- it must be substantiated in the context of actual relationships. How can you love someone you avoid? How can you love people who are different than you, if every single person in your life is just like you?

Here is another thought to chew on: If safety is your number one priority, then fear is your number one influence. What does it say about your belief system if fear is the loudest voice in your heart and mind, if fear casts the deciding vote? Now, if compassion were to be our number one influence, if as obedient disciples loving our “enemies” (insert here: people different than us) was the driving call and vision of our lives, what would our number one priority become? How would it influence where we live, and who we hang out with, and what type of activities we engage in?

It cost Atticus a great deal to take a stand for a black man’s rights in 1935 Alabama. It cost Jesus a great deal to love and honor sinners, tax collectors, Samaritans and women in first century Palestine. And the courageous love that Christ calls for, a love that crosses every barrier in existence and makes no exceptions, will cost you and I no less today. If we haven’t paid a price, then maybe it means we haven’t understood the instructions.

Truths about Power: Thoughts on the Arab Spring (Part I)

I am not sure how the events known as the “Arab Spring” strike those who do not have a personal connection to the region, but for me it is absolutely fascinating, inspiring, and challenging. The term refers to the spontaneous spread of revolutionary, popular movements in the Arab world which began in Tunisia in January of this year and which have since borne massive impact in the form of anti-government protests and demonstrations in Egypt, Yemen, Saudi Arabia, Libya, Jordan, Bahrain, Syria... and many more.

The nature of the rise in political activism within these countries and the ensuing struggle with the existing Arab governments is as varied as the countries themselves. In Egypt, protests were largest in the capital, Cairo, while in Syria, they began in obscure regions on the country’s borders and slowly spread to the more populous cultural hubs. Some conflicts have been religiously sectarian, like Bahrain, while others have been tribal conflicts, like Libya. Some have produced real change very quickly, others slowly, and for some, no change is yet to appear.

Yet clearly the timing demonstrates that these revolutionary movements have more in common then they have distinctions. They represent more than just a tipping point of disillusionment with kings, cronies and corruption. They represent a powerful new idea that is igniting a region: individuals are never powerless.

In the time I have known this region, I have observed a consistent trend of fatalism that runs deep in the culture. This trend exists in America as well; we call it cynicism. It is a permeating belief that things don’t change, and people don’t change, and the best we can do is to learn to adapt, to accept all things, whether it’s a job promotion or a parking ticket or an oppressive government, as coming directly from the hand of God and to learn to live with it. In the Arab’s case, of course they know their rulers are exploitative and brutal, but they feel there is nothing they can do about it.

That is, until they saw the Tunisians bring the house down. Then the Egyptians, gathering in a warm, hospitable protest that only Arabs could pull off, ended Mubarak’s 30 year strangle hold on the largest of all Arab nations. If the Egyptians can do it, why can’t we? they said.

I can see it in the eyes of my Syrian friend from whom I buy vegetables. When I come up to him each week he has a mischievous grin, and when I ask him how he is doing he says “great, the revolution is walking right (which means it continues).” At the end of the month he looks forward to visiting his family, so he can risk his life with his friends on behalf of his people by taking part in the forbidden demonstrations.

The revolution is far from over. Every week people are dying in the streets of Syria. But the shift has been made, and I don’t think it can be unmade. The Syrians, Egyptians and Libyans have discovered a profound truth: a living, breathing, speaking, thinking person is never powerless. We are all potential agents of change just waiting for the right combination of inspiration and conviction.

But I wonder, is that profound truth still alive in America? More importantly, is it alive in the church? I don’t mean this just politically- I mean it spiritually as well. Do we still believe that we are agents of change, that we have a voice? And if you say “no, because our political system is bankrupt, and our culture too materialistic,” I would tell you that is not a legitimate answer. Hope lies not in a system or in a culture or a in a political figure, but in the inspiration and faith of individuals. It lies in our conviction that justice can be done, that the prisoners can be set free, that the blind can be given sight. And if you don’t believe it can happen anymore; if you believe that our role is to accept reality as it is and adapt to it, to live our lives with no sense of empowerment or responsibility to bring the Kingdom of God into our world, well then you are part of the problem.

The Death of bin Laden

Osama bin Laden is dead. After ten years, two wars, billions of dollars spent and countless hours of human labor logged the culprit has been killed. To me, as I assume it was to him, his death was an inevitability. This was the life he had chosen. For a decade his quality of existence had been reduced to midnight flights from cave to cave, compound to compound in barren wildernesses. He was a man of war. He took up the sword. He knew it was coming.

And he certainly deserved justice. I think it would have been better served by a judicial procedure than a precision strike, but I understand that is a bit idealistic of me. By his own admission he was a soldier who initiated, plotted and perpetuated acts of war and murder. As I said, his death had become inevitable.

But then there is the dark side to this whole affair- that Osama bin Laden had become a political prize. He had become the least common denominator- the issue that, while we disagree on just about everything else, Americans could agree on. The hunt for bin Laden and all that it demanded became the price of admission to enter the political rat race. While foreign policy became more complicated than ever, one thing remained simple and true- we will do what it takes to get bin Laden. We will hunt him where he hides. We will never tire. Yep, that will get you votes.

And while I do not contest that he deserved justice- just like every criminal does- I contest the manner in which he and al-qaida were hunted. I contest the number of civilians killed to take him down over the span of a decade. None of us would protest the arrest of a murderer caught in urban America- but how many of us would feel uncomfortable if the military bombed inhabited Brooklyn apartment buildings because they thought that murderer might be hiding inside? And yet in 2010 hundreds of human beings were killed by anti-al-qaida raids; only an estimated 2% of those were consequential al qaida operatives. Such a war on bin Laden and his minions is not actually justice by any definition- it's just good politics.

But the most important question- does his death make us safer? Does it bring peace closer? No, and no. You are not safer because bin Laden is dead, unless you think he was ever going to physically show up on your doorstep and harm you in the first place. The death of a martyr will not dampen the flames of fanaticism any more than the death of Nathan Hale signaled the beginning of the end of the American Revolution. Bin Laden was never more than a symptom- a symptom of deep wells of injustice, poverty and hatred. Things the War on bin Laden did NOTHING to heal.

So, in closing- he is dead, and the world has not changed because of it. Now let's focus some of the resources and attention we spent hunting him on the issues that created him in the first place.

The Egyptian Revolution: The Birth of an Era, the Death of a Myth

History is being made in Egypt. After a long history of dictatorship and 30 years under the same "President", the Egyptians have made their voices heard, informing the world that they too would like a say in who governs them. Tens of thousands have taken to the streets of Cairo, even in the face of tear gas and steel clubs, driven by a common, general sentiment that they refuse to tolerate any longer Hosni Mubarak's police state- a state that for decades had kept a tight grip on all aspects of Egyptian life.

The Arab world has been categorized by scholars and theorists as being resistant to democratic forces. Some attribute that to education, others to religion, others to culture. Now the debate can stop. Egypt, the Arab world's largest country at 80 million people, has turned a corner. We do not know, nor can we pretend to predict with any accuracy, what type of country it will become. But one thing is certain- even as the Mubarak regime desperately makes it final attempts to stay afloat, the voice of the people has been heard.

Egypt's revolution, sparked by a similar outburst in Tunisia and sparking yet another in Yemen, will usher in and set the tone for a new era of Middle East Politics. Sure, the Arab world has democracies (Lebanon, Iraq, the Palestinian Territories), but they have been forged not through the fires of public outcry but by the forces of foreign intervention. Egypt is different. Egypt's revolution is neither a foreign invasion nor a military coup. Whatever happens in Egypt's future will be largely decided by Egyptians- a phenomenon generally unfamiliar to the Arab world.

And in the same moment the fundamental belief behind US foreign policy in the Middle East is rocked to its core- simply put, the belief that Middle East peace can be brought about by controlling Arabs instead of listening to them. That a peace between Arabs and Israeli's can be negotiated without one of the parties being present. Sure, the US has brought Arabs and Israeli's to the table, but those Arab leaders were always, like Mubarak, dictators whose regimes the US coddled. Never were they authentic expressions of the sentiments of their Arab populations.

And now, as the flames of revolution burn in Egypt, they run in part on the fuel of bitterness towards a half century of US policy that spoke of democracy from the platform, while doing everything they could to strengthen democracy's enemies in policy.

Is there a lesson to be learned? Of course, but it is a lesson we should have already learned a thousand times over. We should have learned it in Iran, where our support of the dictatorial Shah and our constant covert meddling led to the relationship with the country we have today. Our attempts to "keep the world safe" by empowering tyrants is not simply against our nation's most precious values and ideals, it is, in the long run, just plain stupid.

What is our Claim to Fame?

It's a question that has been on my mind quite a bit recently. As Christians, what are we known for in the world? The Salvation Army is known for helping the poor. The NRA is known for lobbying on behalf of American gun owners. What is the church known for?

A friend and I had a talk with a local man the other day. He was asking about the crusades, and all the other wars that Christians have advocated for over the years. I explained that none of that reflects the actual teachings of Jesus. I told him how beautiful those teaching are, how he unequivocally demands we love our enemies and bless those who curse us. How we are to forgive even when wronged 70 by 7 times.

He looked confused for a moment, and asked "but who actually does that?"

Now, I recognize that all over the world and throughout all of history faithful men and and women have followed the words of Jesus with their whole heart. Yet his question has some truth in it- the reality is that whether you ask Muslims, Hindus, Jews, or modern secular westerners, what defines the church, you will probably not get a pretty answer. It was the great Hindu leader Ghandi who said that he loved our Christ, but was surprised how different Jesus was than his modern followers.

I was listening to a teaching by Danny Silk from Bethel Church this week, and he said something that brought this train of thought back to the forefront. He said "The church is supposed to be famous for loving, but we are actually famous for judging." And that hits the nail on the head. The American church has, without invitation, taken up the role as America's moral police force. If you want to find the harshest, coldest statements about Muslims, gays, democrats or even other church leaders, look no further. We have publicly called our enemies evil and demonic, while no one else in society would dare use such terms. We have cornered the market on criticism.

Now, take a step back. Picture yourself in the days of Jesus. You have grown up in a poor family, you were never religiously educated, and you never felt worthy to go to the synagogue to pray. Besides, those religious people wear nice robes you can't afford, and the big words they use just make you feel dumb. So instead you do what your friends do. You steal sometimes, you get drunk sometimes, you sleep around sometimes. Then you hear about Jesus. An old friend you know who was a tax collector tells you that Jesus hangs out with people like you, and that he talks about a God who is near to you. That even the prostitutes like to be around them, and he treats them with respect. Soon, you hear that he is coming to your village, and all you want to do is to see him. Then he comes, the crowds around him, and he looks at you, YOU, of all people, and he smiles. And he says "The Kingdom of God is with the poor in spirit," and though you aren't sure fully what he meant, you feel poor in spirit, and are pretty sure he was talking directly to you...

Now, as this first century young man or woman, where would you go if you wanted to be criticized, judged, and told how bad you are? Where would you go to find God?

The reality is the Church for some reason feels that if we don't scream about how wrong everyone else is, then no one will ever know. The reality is, when we define ourselves as being against sin, we have already joined the wrong team. We have joined the dark side. We have set ourselves against our Christ, who, according to his own words, judges no one.

I love the church. I have faith that she will step into her calling; the calling to serve, to bless, to love and show mercy, to heal and to deliver. And that she will one day be known by those who talk about her the way Jesus wanted her to be known- "By this they will know that you are my disciples, by your love one for another." Imagine a people in the earth famous for loving, for loving EVERYONE with kindness and grace. That would a people that bore some resemblance to Jesus.

Fear: The Greatest Threat to our "Way of Life"

Fear is a powerful thing. You see, when you get scared, your adrenaline kicks in- you go into instinct mode. Fight or flight. Let me put it another way- when you are scared, you cease functioning like a human. Humans have complex minds and emotions- humans are spiritual beings. Humans can throw wonderful altruistic causes to aid other humans that they don't even know. Animals don't do any of that. Animals prize survival. When we get scared, all those values and principles that separate us from the rest of creation begin to crumble. Fear turns us into animals.

The reality is, wounded people are more prone to be fearful. A person who gets mugged will have a hard time walking through an alley afterwards. A person who gets robbed is more likely to lock his door at night.

Since 9/11, America has been a wounded nation. On that day, something worse than what anyone could have imagined took place. And as a result, people have allowed fear to take control of their imaginations, and when fear gets the reins, it will always make the worst case scenario look like the most likely outcome.

Sadly, Muslims both in America and around the world have been the victim of those worst case scenario nightmares. Whether they are villagers in Pakistan who have been wrongly assassinated by CIA drone planes, or Arab Americans who have been treated poorly by neighbors, ordinary Muslims have paid a toll for the actions of extremists. That is partly a sad side-effect of human nature, a woeful commonality among all pages of history. But what honestly disturbs me is that in today's America the message of fear, whether it be by politicians or in sermons or in forwarded emails that have no basis in reality, has been popularly championed by those who follow Jesus.

The Gospel of Jesus is the ultimate challenge to our natural survival instincts. He commands us not to worry about the things that inevitably concern us most- what we will eat, what we will wear, whether or not tomorrow will bring enough to live off of. More than that, he tells you that if you want to follow him, you need to let go of your right to be scared of dying. Our fear of death reveals how little we believe the promises he gave us.

Ultimately, people who say they believe in the Bible should have no business in the fear industry. We are a people who should be marked by hope. We are a people who should be defined by our commitment to love and bless all peoples even the face of suffering. The early church faced a nightmare we can't imagine- a Roman Emperor who burned Christians as human candles for party decorations- and yet not a verse of fear can be found in the New Testament. You see, those people believed in the prize they were offered. Do we?

If no one can take anything from you, then no one can be your enemy. The first followers of Jesus were an enemy-less people, a people who walked in the power of God's presence and who changed whole cities with their message. However, if we choose to let fear inform our worldview, it will always make us less then we were created to be.